UTS Organizational Dialogue: Theory & Practice Learning Log 2018

This learning log reflects on the student's understanding of organizational dialogue theory and practice, focusing on business communication principles learned in a UTS course. Part A analyzes a negative customer experience at a Melbourne restaurant, attributing it to miscommunication and lac...Read More

Organization Dialogue: Theory and Practice. Date
Question: Poor Customer Experience.
Business communication is important in ensuring that a business competes favorably in the
market. Having taken my lessons on communication in business, I have gotten my perspective
changed from the view that business communication is only as a means of communication to the
fact that communication is pivotal to an institution’s success.
Part A.
Poor customer experience is something that everyone has had contact with at some point
in his or her life. The poor service most times comes up as a result of miscommunication
between a staff member of the organization and a prospective customer of the business. The
occurrence of miscommunication makes the business lose a lot of prospective customers who, in
the future could have helped generate a lot of revenue to the business (Stein, and Ramaseshan
2016). I have also had the unfortunate experience of experiencing poor service due to
miscommunication. The situation took place in a restaurant in Melbourne. The experience made
me to completely avoid the restaurant in my subsequent times I felt like visiting a restaurant in
Melbourne.
I had decided to enter into the restaurant and order my favorite cappuccino and take my
time reading a book that I had recently acquired. I entered the restaurant and made my order to a
male waiter who was serving a couple in an adjacent table. I waited for about ten minutes before
the waiter reemerged with a cup of coffee. To my utter disappointment, the coffee was not what I
had ordered for, I was disappointed. I tried explaining to the waiter that he had delivered what I
had not ordered for but he was adamant and insisted that I had ordered for that particular kind of
coffee, even raising his voice. I felt embarrassed as people had started to look in the direction of
Student Name. Registration Number. Page | 1

Organization Dialogue: Theory and Practice. Date
my table. Due to the embarrassment, I quickly paid for the coffee and left in a hurry, I have never
returned to the restaurant since. The incident did embarrass me to say the least, it also did lower
my esteem to an extent.
From my experience in the learning of this course unit, I have understood the importance
of getting to understand why communication is important in any business. The poor
communication most probably could have arisen from the fact that the staff were not properly
trained on how to communicate with customers (Sthapit, and Jiménez-Barreto 2018). If the
business had its staff well trained on how to communicate with the customers, the event would
not have happened. Keenness of the staff would have helped a lot in eliminating the probability
of me being given the wrong coffee type. In the event that the waiter could have brought the
wrong coffee but had been well trained on how to communicate, the waiter most likely could
have apologized for bringing the wrong coffee and promptly replacing the coffee with the correct
coffee type that I had ordered for. Training on good communication therefore, could have helped
avoid the occurrence of the ugly situation and get to maintain a good customer relationship.
Part B.
From engaging with the subject materials, I have come to appreciate that I have gained
insights that will work a long way to help me get interpersonal skills that will help strengthen my
communication skills in my future endeavors of employment. Interpersonal skills are necessary
in order to improve the way people one interacts with in the workplace, Interpersonal skills are
necessary to help drive the business day to day (DuBrin, and Geerinck 2015).
The course has helped know how to effectively channel my self confidence to achieve
positive results in my future life endeavors, for instance, an interview. Self confidence would is
Student Name. Registration Number. Page | 2

Organization Dialogue: Theory and Practice. Date
an important interpersonal skill that many interviewers would look for in a person. The course
has helped me know how to communicate effectively enabling me to be self confident in all my
activities. Such an aspect would help me to have a positive self confidence enabling me to have
an advantage over others in the event that I go to an interview.
The course study has also helped me to improve on my work ethic. My work ethic would
be improved in three key aspects which are dependability, professionalism and respectfulness.
Proper communication between me and the employer or fellow workmates would contribute in a
significant manner. Communicating properly would therefore help me to work with
professionalism on any matter that is brought across. Being able to communicate properly will
also help in contributing to me being dependable in the work environment. Being dependable
would help me to be delegated with duty with a senior person and him having trust in me that I
would deliver effectively. Knowing how to communicate well would also help me be respectful
to those of higher rank than me. Knowing how to address them effectively will help give them
their respect and improve my personality in the workplace (Mencl, Wefald, and van Ittersum
2016).
The course has also helped to build me to be more receptive to feedback. Appropriate
communication between me and a fellow workmate or a senior staff would be ensured if I am
open to feedback concerning my statements or actions. Being receptive to feedback would help
me correct the ways in which I may be wrong taking into mind the opinion of others. Improving
on my feedback receptiveness would help me to build on my personal relation with others
(Goetsch, D.L. and Davis 2014).
Student Name. Registration Number. Page | 3

Organization Dialogue: Theory and Practice. Date
The course has helped me to build more on my body language. The course has taught me
the importance of body language and certain body postures in ensuring that information is well
delivered to the prospective person. I do know on how to get feedback from someone also
through reading of their body language in the event that they intend to pass communication that
way (Kar, and Kar 2017).
From my study of this course, I have gained a lot and I do feel that it will help in a great
way to boost my self confidence in communication in the business.
Student Name. Registration Number. Page | 4

Organization Dialogue: Theory and Practice. Date
References.
DuBrin, A.J. and Geerinck, T., 2015. Human relations: Interpersonal, job-oriented skills.
Pearson.
Goetsch, D.L. and Davis, S.B., 2014. Quality management for organizational excellence. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: pearson.
Kar, A.K. and Kar, A.K., 2017. How to Walk Your Talk: Effective Use of Body Language for
Business Professionals. IUP Journal of Soft Skills, 11(1), p.16.
Mencl, J., Wefald, A.J. and van Ittersum, K.W., 2016. Transformational leader attributes:
interpersonal skills, engagement, and well-being. Leadership & Organization
Development Journal, 37(5), pp.635-657.
Stein, A. and Ramaseshan, B., 2016. Towards the identification of customer experience touch
point elements. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 30, pp.8-19.
Sthapit, E. and Jiménez-Barreto, J., 2018. You never know what you will get in an Airbnb: poor
communication destroys value for guests. Current Issues in Tourism, pp.1-4.
Student Name. Registration Number. Page | 5